Post by Deleted on Nov 3, 2012 21:47:37 GMT
Life looks being Leeds-focused for a while so today was something of a dummy run on the train and then through to Guiseley for the FA Cup tie against Barrow.
Guiseley is eight or nine miles out of Leeds on the line to Ilkley. It's a separate township within the boundaries of Leeds. The football club plays at Nethermoor right next to the A65.
Guiseley are currently the strongest non-league club in Yorkshire and are second in Conference North ahead of Bradford Park Avenue, Halifax and, er, Harrogate. Guiseley stepped up to the Northern Premier some twenty years ago and this is only their third season in Conference North. They've done well so far making the play-offs both times.
Nethermoor is a tidy ground with four covered stands and a decent number of seats. As is often the case in the north of England, the town football ground adjoins the town cricket club. In fact the first sign you see welcomes you to the cricket club by telling you the 2nd XI have a fixture on 22 April. That almost makes you think that spring is just a few weeks away.
Today's opponents were Barrow from the Conference Premier. The maps may suggest this was a Yorkshire-Cumbria clash but the visitors' chant of "Oh Lancy, Lancy, Lancy, Lancy, Lancy, Lancy Lancashire" would suggest something rather different.
I'd guess there were around about 300-400 Barrow supporters in the 1,600 crowd. I always think Barrow are one of the bigger non-league clubs even though they've never really seriously challenged at getting back in the Football League. Geography is a pisser for them but you imagine they'd get bigger crowds in the League than Accrington or Morecambe. But somehow I doubt whether they'll ever quite make it back without serious investment.
The game was a cracker; one that could be filed under "a good old-fashioned cup tie". Direct at times - but not without skill - and always keenly contested. Guiseley went two up; Barrow came back just before and just after half-time. It could have gone either way but it didn't. Final score: 2-2.
A Torquay United footnote: Tom Aldred, a loanee last season, named in the programme but not in the Barrow squad.
Guiseley is eight or nine miles out of Leeds on the line to Ilkley. It's a separate township within the boundaries of Leeds. The football club plays at Nethermoor right next to the A65.
Guiseley are currently the strongest non-league club in Yorkshire and are second in Conference North ahead of Bradford Park Avenue, Halifax and, er, Harrogate. Guiseley stepped up to the Northern Premier some twenty years ago and this is only their third season in Conference North. They've done well so far making the play-offs both times.
Nethermoor is a tidy ground with four covered stands and a decent number of seats. As is often the case in the north of England, the town football ground adjoins the town cricket club. In fact the first sign you see welcomes you to the cricket club by telling you the 2nd XI have a fixture on 22 April. That almost makes you think that spring is just a few weeks away.
Today's opponents were Barrow from the Conference Premier. The maps may suggest this was a Yorkshire-Cumbria clash but the visitors' chant of "Oh Lancy, Lancy, Lancy, Lancy, Lancy, Lancy Lancashire" would suggest something rather different.
I'd guess there were around about 300-400 Barrow supporters in the 1,600 crowd. I always think Barrow are one of the bigger non-league clubs even though they've never really seriously challenged at getting back in the Football League. Geography is a pisser for them but you imagine they'd get bigger crowds in the League than Accrington or Morecambe. But somehow I doubt whether they'll ever quite make it back without serious investment.
The game was a cracker; one that could be filed under "a good old-fashioned cup tie". Direct at times - but not without skill - and always keenly contested. Guiseley went two up; Barrow came back just before and just after half-time. It could have gone either way but it didn't. Final score: 2-2.
A Torquay United footnote: Tom Aldred, a loanee last season, named in the programme but not in the Barrow squad.
